Tag: 2021 U.S. Open

U.S. Open tee times, TV info for Thursday’s first round

Everything you need to know for the first round of the U.S. Open.

After conflicting reports and statements early Tuesday morning it is now official: Bryson DeChambeau will not be defending his U.S. Open title alongside Brooks Koepka this week. Sorry, golf fans.

Instead, the eight-time PGA Tour winner will tee it up alongside U.S. Amateur champion Tyler Strafaci and Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama (4:14 p.m. ET, 1st tee) in the first two rounds of the 121st U.S. Open at Torrey Pines in San Diego this week. The South Course plays host to the national championship for the first time since Tiger Woods’ epic win with a broken leg in 2008.

Other featured groups worth watching include the following: Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose (4:36 p.m., 1st tee); Collin Morikawa, Justin Thomas, Brooks Koepka (10:29 a.m., 10th tee); Max Homa, Xander Schauffele, Phil Mickelson (10:51 a.m., 10th tee); Will Zalatoris, Scottie Scheffler, Jordan Spieth (4:25 p.m., 10th tee); Marc Leishman, Jon Rahm, Patrick Reed (4:36 p.m., 10th tee).

From tee times to TV and streaming info, here’s what you need to know for the first round of the U.S. Open.

U.S. Open: How to watch | Odds and picks | Fantasy rankings

1st tee

Tee time Players
9:45 AM Sahith Theegala, Edoardo Molinari, Greyson Sigg
9:56 AM Chris Baker, J.J. Spaun, Fabian Gomez
10:07 AM Patrick Rodgers, Robby Shelton, Pierceson Coody (a)
10:18 AM Russell Henley, Mackenzie Hughes, Harris English
10:29 AM Francesco Molinari, Henrik Stenson, Shane Lowry
10:40 AM Matt Fitzpatrick, Tyrrell Hatton, Viktor Hovland
10:51 AM Martin Kaymer, Webb Simpson, Gary Woodland
11:02 AM Tony Finau, Abraham Ancer, Daniel Berger
11:13 AM Si Woo Kim, Kevin Na, Bernd Wiesberger
11:24 AM Jimmy Walker, Ian Poulter, Ryan Palmer
11:35 AM J.T. Poston, Adam Hadwin, Joe Long (a)
11:46 AM Luis Fernando Barco, Dylan Meyer, Matthew Sharpstene (a)
11:57 AM Mario Carmona, Wilson Furr, Davis Shore
3:30 PM Zach Zaback, Steve Allan, Eric Cole
3:41 PM Hayden Buckley, Taylor Montgomery, Jordan Smith
3:52 PM Chez Reavie, Richard Bland, Troy Merritt
4:03 PM Robert MacIntyre, Victor Perez, Matt Wallace
4:14 PM Tyler Strafaci, Hideki Matsuyama, Bryson DeChambeau
4:25 PM Adam Scott, Sergio Garcia, Bubba Watson
4:36 PM Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose
4:47 PM Matt Jones, Brendan Steele, Cameron Smith
4:58 PM Carlos Ortiz, Zach Johnson, Lanto Griffin
5:09 PM Sam Burns, Chan Kim, Thomas Detry
5:20 PM Ollie Osborne (a), Peter Malnati, Brian Stuard
5:31 PM John Huh, Johannes Veerman, Zack Sucher
5:42 PM Rick Lamb, Michael Johnson, Carson Schaake

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10th tee

Tee time Players
9:45 AM Andy Pope, Brad Kennedy, Thomas Aiken
9:56 AM Yosuke Asaji, Marcus Armitage, Jhonattan Vegas
10:07 AM Cameron Young, Wilco Nienaber, Guido Migliozzi
10:18 AM Brian Harman, Tommy Fleetwood, Matthew Wolff
10:29 AM Collin Morikawa, Justin Thomas, Brooks Koepka
10:40 AM Kevin Kisner, Billy Horschel, Matt Kuchar
10:51 AM Max Homa, Xander Schauffele, Phil Mickelson
11:02 AM Jason Kokrak, Cameron Champ, Corey Conners
11:13 AM Paul Barjon, Sam Ryder, Ryo Ishikawa
11:24 AM Dylan Frittelli, Martin Laird, K.H. Lee
11:35 AM Rafa Cabrera Bello, Adrian Meronk, Sung Kang
11:46 AM Akshay Bhatia, Andrew Kozan (a), Alvaro Ortiz
11:57 AM James Hervol, Hayden Springer, Roy Cootes
3:30 PM David Coupland, Taylor Pendrith, Wade Ormsby
3:41 PM Tom Hoge, Bo Hoag, Joe Highsmith (a)
3:52 PM Erik van Rooyen, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Charl Schwartzel
4:03 PM Garrick Higgo, Cole Hammer (a), Joaquin Niemann
4:14 PM Lee Westwood, Stewart Cink, Paul Casey
4:25 PM Will Zalatoris, Scottie Scheffler, Jordan Spieth
4:36 PM Marc Leishman, Jon Rahm, Patrick Reed
4:47 PM Patrick Cantlay, Louis Oosthuizen, Sungjae Im
4:58 PM Kevin Streelman, Branden Grace, Charley Hoffman
5:09 PM Sebastian Munoz, Rikuya Hoshino, Brendon Todd
5:20 PM Wyndham Clark, Matthias Schmid (a), Matthew Southgate
5:31 PM Spencer Ralston (a), Dylan Wu, Justin Suh
5:42 PM Luis Gagne, Kyle Westmoreland, Christopher Crawford

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Ian Poulter shows how absurdly deep the U.S. Open rough is at Torrey Pines

Uh oh.

We went over this last week when Xander Schauffele previewed the rough at Torrey Pines, which is playing host to the 2021 U.S. Open: the tall stuff will be brutal, as it is every year at the Open, and golfers usually show us on video how bad it is.

Ian Poulter has done this before at past U.S. Opens and this year is no different. He asked viewers to find his ball in the rough as he was practicing, and yeah, it’s impossible to find. When he reveals where it is and how buried it is, you know it’s going to be brutal this year if you miss greens and fairways.

Welp.

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2021 U.S. Open: 1 of these 10 golfers will win at Torrey Pines

One of these guys will win it all.

It’s been quite a year of golf majors already.

We saw history made by Hideki Matsuyama at the 2021 Masters and Phil Mickelson turned back the clock to claim victory at the PGA Championship.

Now, we’ve got the 2021 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines starting Thursday, and like we’ve done in the past, we’re picking 10 golfers who have the best chance of winning and boldly declaring one of them will emerge as the victor by the time Sunday rolls around.

So let’s run through this list of 10 very talented dudes, one of which will win the major that’s always challenging this week:

Report: Bryson DeChambeau declined to be paired with Brooks Koepka for the U.S. Open

The pairing we’ve all been waiting for.

Enough of the social media back-and-forth. Imagine how fun and exciting it would be for golf if Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau were paired together for a tournament so they could settle their beef on the course.

Keep imagining, because it doesn’t appear to be happening this week for the 121st U.S. Open.

Appearing on SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio ahead of this week’s major championship at Torrey Pines in San Diego, California, Brad Faxon told Michael Breed that he heard about a possible Koepka and DeChambeau pairing at the U.S. Open.

“I found out last night that the USGA actually did call Bryson DeChambeau and his agent to ask if they would be okay with that and Bryson declined,” said Faxon.

Here we go again.

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Fantasy golf power rankings for the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines

Feeling lucky this week?

Major championship golf returns to Torrey Pines in San Diego, California, for the second time this year for for the 121st U.S. Open. Torrey Pines annually hosts the Farmers Insurance Open but this week will hold its first U.S. Open since 2008. Below, we look at the fantasy golf power rankings and odds for the 2021 U.S. Open, with PGA Tour picks and predictions.

The third major of 2021 is the fifth of the 2020-21 Tour season. Bryson DeChambeau won his first major at the 2020 U.S. Open in September at Winged Foot Golf Club, and he’ll look to become the first back-to-back U.S. Open champ since rival Brooks Koepka won in 2017 and 2018.

Torrey Pines will play to 7,600-7,800 yards and to a par of 71. Conditions will also be much more difficult than they were for the Farmers Insurance Open in January.

Odds provided by BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Odds last updated Monday at 9:15 p.m. ET.

Fantasy golf power rankings

20. Marc Leishman (+7000)

Won the 2020 Farmers Insurance Open at 15-under par and had runner-up finishes in 2010 and 2014. He returned to the winner’s circle with partner Cameron Smith at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans earlier this year. His 35 rounds played on Torrey Pines South Course are fourth-most in the field.

19. Sungjae Im (+7000)

Put together a solid weekend at the Palmetto Championship to finish T-35 last week. He averaged 1.30 Strokes Gained: Approach and 1.08 SG: Tee-to-Green per round.

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18. Abraham Ancer (+6600)

Comes off a missed cut at the Porsche European Open after a strong run on the PGA Tour that included three straight top-10 finishes at the Valspar Championship (5), Wells Fargo Championship (2) and PGA Championship (T-8). His driver and irons are strong, but he needs to be better around the greens.

17. Daniel Berger (+5000)

Tenth on Tour this season with 1.72 total strokes gained on the field per round. He has one win and four other top-10 finishes against just two missed cuts through 12 events in 2021, but he missed the cut at the Masters and tied for 75th at the PGA Championship.

16. Cameron Smith (+5500)

Averaging 0.44 SG: Around-the-Green and 0.62 SG: Putting per round to nicely complement a strong iron game. He’s also 31st on Tour in bogey avoidance and can avoid the high scores that plague U.S. Open scorecards.

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15. Will Zalatoris (+4000)

Twenty-third in bogey avoidance, T-29 in par 4 efficiency from 450-500 yards and third in SG: Approach per round. He tied for sixth at the U.S. Open in the fall and has six top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour since, including both the Masters and PGA Championship.

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14. Scottie Scheffler (+4000)

Hasn’t finished outside the top 20 in any of his last four major appearances, including a T-8 at the PGA Championship last month. His third-place finish at the Memorial Tournament was his fifth top 10 through 15 events to begin the 2021 schedule.

13. Patrick Reed (+2800)

Won the Farmers Insurance Open in January; however, the U.S. Open will be played solely on Torrey Pines South Course and the conditions will be much tougher with thicker rough and faster greens. He gained 1.31 strokes per round around the greens in January, but that area of the game will be much tougher, in particular.

12. Patrick Cantlay (+2500)

Defeated Collin Morikawa in a playoff to win the Memorial Tournament after Jon Rahm was forced to withdraw with the 54-hole lead. The U.S. Open has historically been his worst of the four majors, but his short game has been strong on the 2020-21 season with 0.46 SG: Around-the-Green per round.

11. Jordan Spieth (+2000)

The greatest weakness in his resurgent 2021 schedule has been accuracy off the tee. That’s likely to be met with greater consequence at Torrey Pines than at any of the eight courses where he placed in the top 10 this year.

10. Xander Schauffele (+1800)

Enters the week No. 2 in the Golfweek/Sagarin world rankings and second in total strokes gained on the field per round for the season. He finished T-6 or better in each of his four career U.S. Open appearances, but he missed the cut at the PGA Championship last month.

9. Justin Thomas (+2000)

He hasn’t finished better than T-13 in any of his last seven events following victory at The Players. He’s second on Tour in SG: Approach and fifth in SG: Tee-to-Green but has limited experience at Torrey Pines.

8. Rory McIlroy (+2000)

Averaging 2.40 strokes gained on the field over nine career rounds on the South Course. He had a disappointing T-49 finish at the PGA Championship but improved to T-18 at the Memorial Tournament with 1.01 SG: Approach per round and a strong putting performance.

7. Viktor Hovland (+2500)

The two-time PGA Tour winner had one of his two 2021 runner-up finishes at the Farmers in January. He’s fourth among qualified golfers in SG: Off-the-Tee, and has finished T-13 and T-12 in two U.S. Open appearances.

6. Collin Morikawa (+2200)

Followed up his 2020 PGA Championship win with a missed cut at the U.S. Open, but has rebounded with strong showings at the first two majors of 2021. He’s first on Tour in both SG: Approach and SG: Tee-to-Green, and tied for first in par 4 efficiency from the key distance of 450-500 yards.

5. Tony Finau (+2500)

Four straight top-10 finishes and nine in his last 13 major appearances. He has gained an average of 2.06 strokes per round on the South Course over 21 rounds.

4. Dustin Johnson (+1400)

No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking but fifth in the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings. Coming off a T-10 finish against a weak field at the Palmetto Championship in which he averaged 1.82 SG: Tee-to-Green per round.

3. Brooks Koepka (+1800)

The two-time U.S. Open champ and four-time major winner missed the cut at the Palmetto Championship due to an awful short game and putting performance. The conditions will be much more fitting to his game this week.

2. Bryson DeChambeau (+1800)

The winner of the 2020 U.S. Open by six strokes is being slighted a bit by the odds this week. He’s No. 1 among qualified golfers in SG: Off-the-Tee and fourth in SG: Tee-to-Green. His added power and distance are best-suited to the U.S. Open conditions.

1. Jon Rahm (+1000)

The No. 1 player in the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings was forced to withdraw from the Memorial with a six-stroke lead after the third round due to a positive COVID-19 test. He eyes his first career major win at a course where he has averaged 2.05 strokes gained per round over 15 career rounds.

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Lynch: Phil Mickelson launches 30th bid for U.S. Open title determined to tune out distractions

“It’s a unique opportunity because I’ve never won a U.S. Open,” Phil Mickelson said Monday, a fact even the most casual fan knows.

LA JOLLA, Calif. — It was 31 years ago Monday—June 14, 1990—that golf’s Ahab set off in pursuit of his whale, a fruitless hunt that has been the sport’s most compelling, quixotic and at times anguished tale.

Phil Mickelson turned 20 years old during that ’90 U.S. Open at Medinah Country Club and earned low amateur honors. Hale Irwin became the oldest-ever champion at age 45. Three decades later, the kid is collecting the old man accolades, but is still searching for the prize that matters to him most.

Mickelson became the oldest winner in major championship history when he won the PGA Championship at Kiawah Island last month. A second straight major victory—especially this major, in his hometown—would be the stuff of fairytales. Except Moby Dick wasn’t a fairytale.

“It’s a unique opportunity because I’ve never won a U.S. Open,” Mickelson said Monday, a fact even the most casual fan knows. The PGA Championship was his sixth major title but Mickelson’s career has been defined by the only major he hasn’t won. He’s finished second in the U.S. Open a record six times, and since his birthday always falls during tournament week, every disappointment comes with a reminder that he has less time remaining to fulfill his dream of the career Grand Slam.

He will launch his 30th bid for the title on Thursday and has been determined to tune out the distractions.

“I’ve kind of shut off all the noise. I’ve shut off my phone. I’ve shut off a lot of the other stuff to where I can kind of focus in on this week and really give it my best chance to try to play my best,” he said. “Now, you always need some luck, you always need things to kind of come together and click, but I know that I’m playing well, and I just wanted to give myself every opportunity to be in play at my best.”

U.S. Open
Phil Mickelson chips onto the 11th green during a practice round of the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines. Photo by Michael Madrid-USA TODAY Sports

Mickelson knows something about playing his best over the clifftop South course at Torrey Pines. He has won the regular PGA Tour stop here, the Farmers Insurance Open, three times. However, the last of those wins was 20 years ago and he hasn’t cracked the top 10 in a decade. His last decent finish in the U.S. Open was his last near-miss, eight years ago at Merion.

That’s the problem with getting to be Mickelson’s age: the numbers tend to tell you how good you used to be. What happened at Kiawah Island proved how good he still can be, in the right circumstances.

The Hall of Famer upended the oddsmakers by holding off Brooks Koepka and Louis Oosthuizen by two strokes, unexpectedly ending a two-year winless drought, and fully eight years after his last major win at the Open Championship in 2013.

“When it all comes together at a perfect time like that was exciting to put it together,” he said. “I feel like – or I’m hopeful that some of the things that I had learned heading in will carry over and give me some more opportunities this summer, because I feel like I’m playing some good golf.”

If he is to finally win the U.S. Open, Mickelson will need something more than good golf. Torrey Pines is a test unlike the one he mastered at Kiawah Island’s Ocean Course. That windswept layout in South Carolina rewarded the skills a man accumulates with age, like patience, experience and strategic savvy. Torrey Pines, however, is a typically demanding U.S. Open layout that exposes what a man loses with age: distance, strength, confidence on the greens.

Despite living nearby, Mickelson doesn’t spend much time at Torrey Pines outside of tournaments—Tour players tend not to enjoy lengthy rounds on municipal golf courses—but he’s been coming by recently in an effort to relearn the golf course and settle on a strategy for this week.

“There’s a proper way to play here to each pin, and I just have tried to do too much in the past,” he admitted. “I felt like if I could learn the greens and know what a lot of the 30- and 40-foot putts do, then I don’t have to try to get it into these tiny little shelves, and I can make easy pars and make a few of the longer putts. That was kind of my thought process.”

Mickelson played a practice round Monday with Akshay Bhatia, who was born a few months before the veteran recorded his second runner-up finish in the U.S. Open in 2002, but it’s unclear whose brain was being picked. “He has as many questions for me as I have for him,” Mickelson said. “I’m curious how he does things too because he’s got a lot of clubhead speed, a lot of strength, a lot of shot making. He might ask me a few things on chipping. I might ask him a few things on clubs.”

In the only other U.S. Open contested at Torrey Pines in 2008, Mickelson backdoored a top 20 finish on the strength of a solid final round. The weapons he had back then in his prime have been recalibrated to the limitations of a man who turns 51 on Wednesday and who now needs to plot his way around a major venue rather than simply overpower it.

“You kind of learn in plateaus, and every now and then you might be working hard, working hard, doing the right things and not getting the progress, and then you kind of get a spike,” he said philosophically. “That spike came at the PGA to where it all kind of comes together and you put it all together it was at the right time. Hopefully, I’ll continue to play at a new plateau, at a little bit higher level, because some things started to click.”

That sense of boyish optimism is the only thing that remains unchanged since Mickelson began his U.S. Open quest 31 years ago. No matter how many gut punches and near misses he has had along the way, Ahab isn’t ready to give up on the hunt just yet.

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U.S. Open merchandise tent is back, but small at Torrey Pines

There was no merchandise tent last year at Winged Foot, but there is plenty of cool gear to buy at Torrey Pines.

LA JOLLA, CALIF. — Walk around any golf club in the United States and you will see logos everywhere. Apparel brands, local clubs and maybe a few destination resorts like Bandon Dunes or Pinehurst. Masters gear is prized because the only place where you can get Masters swag is at Augusta National during the tournament.

The USGA sells a lot of U.S. Open merchandise and according to Mary Lopuszynski, who is the organization’s managing director of merchandising and licensing, most of it is purchased in massive pavilions at the host course. Back in 2008, when the U.S. Open was played at Torrey Pines, the merchandise tent was, in fact, 42,000-square feet. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there was no merchandise tent at the 2020 U.S. Open at Winged Foot. Merchandise was sold online, but nothing was for sale at the course.

This year, as the U.S. Open returns to Torrey Pines, the merchandise tent returns, too. It’s open on two sides, and therefore considered to be an outdoor space by the state of California. But it is just 12,000 square feet this year, and features only four apparel brands instead of the typical eight or nine.

Hats are usually the biggest seller because they are less expensive, can be worn immediately and make an easy gift. Clothing is getting more and more popular, and according to Lopuszynski, lifestyle items are also popular.

If you are going to be one of the lucky few to attend the 2021 U.S. Open in person, the merchandise tent is on the left side of the first fairway. If not, you can buy official U.S. Open gear online. Below are some of the cool things you can get to commemorate this year’s event at Torrey Pines.

Winning golf equipment at the U.S. Open since 2011

Check out all the gear that helped players win the last 10 U.S. Open championships.

LA JOLLA, Calif. — Equipment is never the story at a major championship the way shotmaking, nerves and skill tend to be, until something happens that pushes gear in the spotlight.

For example, in 2020 at Winged Foot, Bryson DeChambeau’s prodigious driving and 5.5-degree Cobra driver grabbed people’s attention. In 2019 at Pebble Beach, as Gary Woodland was holding off Brooks Koepka down the stretch, Woodland used a 64-degree TaylorMade High-Toe wedge to pitch the ball off the fabled 17th green to save par and hold off the three-time major champion. The year before at Shinnecock Hills, golf fans were amazed that Koepka won his second consecutive U.S. Open title without having an equipment deal with any manufacturers. In all of those instances, and others, equipment became news.

This year the U.S. Open is being played in the San Diego area at Torrey Pines. There are numerous golf equipment makers here like Callaway, TaylorMade, Titleist and Cobra, along with shaft companies like Fujikura and Mitsubishi, as well as Lamkin grips. So in homage to gear, here is all the golf equipment that helped players win the last 10 U.S. Open championships.

U.S. Open odds, predictions and picks for Torrey Pines

Feeling lucky this week?

The U.S. Open returns to Torrey Pines in La Jolla, California, for the first time since 2008 for the 121st playing of the national championship.

A field of 156 is in attendance as Bryson DeChambeau tries to defend his 2020 title. Jon Rahm enters the week as the favorite to win the U.S. Open and at No. 1 in the Golfweek/Sagarin world ranking. He’s teeing it up for the first time since being forced to withdraw from the Memorial Tournament due to a positive COVID-19 test.

The South Course plays to a par of 71. While the listed yardage is 7,652, it can play up to 7,800 yards. Greens are comprised of Bentgrass and Poa Annua. Patrick Reed won the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines in January, but that tournament is split between the North and South courses.

Below, we look at the U.S. Open odds and make our predictions to win. Odds provided by BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Monday at 8:55 a.m. ET.

More: 2021 U.S. Open betting guide

Favorite

Jon Rahm (+900)

Rahm held a six-stroke lead after the third round of the Memorial Tournament when told he needed to withdraw. He was cleared earlier than expected and will be able to get in some early prep work this week.

The five-time PGA Tour champ got his first career win at the 2017 Farmers Insurance Open. He has gained an average of 2.05 strokes per round on the field over 15 career rounds on the South Course. He was the runner-up at the 2020 Farmers, and he tied for seventh in January.

Rahm also leads the Tour this season in total strokes gained on the field per round, and he’s second in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green. He’s ninth on Tour in bogey avoidance.

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Contender

Cameron Smith (+5000)

Smith has 15 rounds of experience on the South Course with an average of 0.97 strokes gained per round. He’s gaining 0.85 strokes per round from tee-to-green and his short game has been excellent in the 2020-21 season. He’s 31st in bogey avoidance.

The Australian has just one solo PGA Tour win in his career, but he has three top-10 finishes in 2021, including a T-10 at the Masters in April. He didn’t miss the cut in any of the last 11 majors.

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Long shot

Matt Wallace (+15000)

Wallace is playing Torrey Pines for the first time, but he should fit the course well. He is averaging 0.22 SG: Off-the-Tee and 0.78 SG: Tee-to-Green per round, and he’s 19th on Tour in par 4 efficiency: 450-500 yards.

The Englishman made the cut in each of his last eight majors, including a T-12 finish at the 2019 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. His long irons are well-suited to the venue, and he can handle the thick rough off the fairways and around the greens.

Get some action on the 2021 U.S. Open by signing up and betting at BetMGM. If you’re looking for more sports betting picks and tips, access all of our content at SportsbookWire.com. Please gamble responsibly.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage. This information is for entertainment purposes only. We make no representations or warranties as to the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any content.

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Three colleges have a combined 20 golfers in the field at the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines

These three colleges have a combined 20 golfers in the field at Torrey Pines for the 121st U.S. Open.

Bragging rights and school pride are always on the line in sports. Golf is no different.

The 121st U.S. Open at Torrey Pines is this week in San Diego, and among the many story lines is which colleges have the most representation.

Maybe it’s not a surprise but the Georgia Bulldogs will have the most college alums on the South Course. Only three countries—the United States, England and South Africa—will have more golfers in San Diego than Georgia will have among the 156-golfer field.

The first round tees off Thursday. Here’s a closer look at the three schools with the most players competing in the tournament.